The Safari Rally is a rally race held in East Africa. It was first held from 27 May to 1 June 1953 as the East African Coronation Safari in Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika,[1] as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. In 1960 it was renamed the East African Safari Rally and kept that name until 1974, when it became the Safari Rally. It was one of the most prestigious and celebrated rallies of its time, as well as one of the toughest.
The Safari Rally was notorious for being by far the most difficult rally in the WRC championship to win- some had said that winning this particular rally was the equivalent of winning 3 other rallies. The arduous conditions such as the constantly changing weather and the very rough roads- often rife with sharp rocks made life very difficult for team personnel- repairs were constantly having to be made to the cars and a lot of time would be often lost- and all this work had to be done in sometimes intense heat and humidity.